motivation

I've been playing bass for about a year now and when I first began I was really into it, but now-a-days I don't really feel like playing. I don't know what it is. Anyone been through this before? Help; thx.

hehe, well, you could always jsut quit and give me your jazz . no, j/k, actually you might want to try joining a band, if you haven't already. that makes things more interesting, and adds new things to playing.

Maybe is posible that you're just picked up the bass looking for a hobbie and it wasn't just for you, but if you started really into it, as you said, and you've been playing for a year, you've gotta be sure to have searched for motivation of all kinds before you quit playing.. but well..

Have you tried playing in a band? it is a very different situation than playing along with a cd...I think there's nothing compared to jamming or playing a good song you've done with a good band.. It takes time and practice but is such a great feeling..

also.. What music do you listen to? maybe the music you've been listening doesn't turn you on.. If that's the case a lot of TB'ers could recommend you something fresh for your ears that would definately motivate you..

Many, many moon past, when I was in Marine Corps boot camp, there was a special platoon called "Motivation." This was a platoon to which all the non-hackers were sent ... you know, the guys who just couldn't get motivated.

The first time I saw this platoon, I was standing in line for breakfast at 4:30 am. Here comes a whole platoon of downtrodden-looking hosers, each carrying two full buckets of sand, one in each hand. I warily asked the recruit in front of me (talking was forbidden in the chow line) who those poor derelicts were. "Motivation platoon, and shut up, a$$hole," he whispered. "Motivation? How in the hell is that supposed to motivate you?" I said, violating his wishes, and exposing us both to thousands of pushups. "It motivates you to stay the hell out of Motivation Platoon, *##@!!&^%. ," he cordially responded with a mildly threatening look.

Turns out, the hours for Motivation Platoon were 3:00 am to 7:00 pm. Pretty much all they did was go dig up sand with their buckets, run around with it, dump it out, get some more, and do it all over again. Now what kind of a life is that?

I don't really know how this pertains to your current dilemma, but maybe you'll get something out of it.

Try looking at some notice boards in your local music store, they usually have people looking for people to join some bands.

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I'm kinda in the same boat. As in, I have the motivation, but I would like to find other people to jam with. I don't have the time or the dedication to join a band (work full time, school part time plus home life). Does anyone know where to find people who wanna jam?

I'm in the same boat. I don't have the time to be in a band. I have a full job and four children to grow up. Many time a get the same frustration that you have. Try to buy a good book that improved your knowledge and play. I think Building Walking Bass Lines by Ed Friedland could be a good choice. I know that joing a band could be better. But always make your homework, try to learn that song, practice that book and learn how to read(if you don't know). And off course listen to Jaco, Jeff Berlin, Gary Willis, Sal Cuevas, Geddy Lee, Michael Manring, Eddie Gomez, Victor Bailey, Richard Bona, Steve Harris, they are many... I remember the first time I hear Jaco music, that give me a lot of motivation.

yeah i play a lot of jaco, like teen town and donna lee but they're easy and get boring fast. I need new stuff to play thats different. I've tried some classical stuff and jazz but they don't really excite me.

Are you a tab user? Do you have any knowlage of scales or anything of the sort. I recently saw a post by a guy that stopped playing cause it got boring but when he got lessons and learned theory and other things he became motivated to play again. While i have very limited knowlage of these things and still need a teacher *anybody in hawaii that wants to help * , I think that might help.

Originally posted by ScretHate yeah i play a lot of jaco, like teen town and donna lee but they're easy and get boring fast. I need new stuff to play thats different. I've tried some classical stuff and jazz but they don't really excite me.

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YOu´vebeen playing for a year and you're so skilled that you can play jaco stuff and get bored but you can't create something that you like and exites you? weird case.. but anyway..

Originally posted by ScretHate yeah i play a lot of jaco, like teen town and donna lee but they're easy and get boring fast. I need new stuff to play thats different. I've tried some classical stuff and jazz but they don't really excite me.

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Terribly impressive for sure; just not particularly believable. These pieces give even the greatest of players a frantic dash for their low-end cashola.
My advice? Go back and read Munjibunga's post. Unless you got the point straight away, got bored with it, and moved on, that is.

Originally posted by *ToNeS*
Terribly impressive for sure; just not particularly believable. These pieces give even the greatest of players a frantic dash for their low-end cashola.
My advice? Go back and read Munjibunga's post. Unless you got the point straight away, got bored with it, and moved on, that is.

Originally posted by ScretHate yeah i play a lot of jaco, like teen town and donna lee but they're easy and get boring fast. I need new stuff to play thats different. I've tried some classical stuff and jazz but they don't really excite me.

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Wow. I wish I could play Jaco!

Maybe you feel unmotivated because you have nothing to challenge you. There could be lots of reasons for not having motivation but I'll lean towards this one. Try to pick up a difficult piece (sorry, can't thing of any suggestions right now...) to learn. Find a good teacher if you don't have one already who will challenge you. Find a band who will challenge you and you will grow and learn from each other. Learn something new. Do you know theory? There's lots of things that can motivate you if you are willing to learn new things.